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Topic: Working Safely around your Foretravel (Read 41011 times) previous topic - next topic

Re: Working Safely around your Foretravel

Reply #20 –
This is a question for Barry. Those tubular steel spacers that you use looks just like what I need. Nice and simple. Can you tell me what size they are, and what thickness of steel tube. They look to be about 1 1/2" steel and I am guessing 1/8 thick wall.
Thanks

Re: Working Safely around your Foretravel

Reply #21 –
Quote
This is a question for Barry. Those tubular steel spacers that you use looks just like what I need.
Can you tell me what size they are, and what thickness of steel tube. They look to be about 1 1/2" steel and I am guessing 1/8 thick wall.
They are 11" tall, 1/4" thick, 2" square steel. I had them cut at a scrap metal shop.

Re: Working Safely around your Foretravel

Reply #22 –
Thanks Barry. I am getting some of these cut right away.

Re: Working Safely around your Foretravel

Reply #23 –
How about this for a safety block....4" x 6" x 10" wood block.  Bought an 8' length at Home Depot and had them cut it into 10" pieces. 
They seem to work fine.  I used two on each side of the front and one on each side of the back.  Lowered the coach until they were tight.  I could not find anything suitable in steel. 

Re: Working Safely around your Foretravel

Reply #24 –
Quote
How about this for a safety block....4" x 6" x 10" wood block.
Looks like they should be strong enough. I would turn them 90 degrees so more of it is being used.
They will take more storage room in the bay.

Re: Working Safely around your Foretravel

Reply #25 –
Went to LOWES..They would not cut...excuse they used was saw not able to cut that size...Believe associate was just Lazy...but..

Re: Working Safely around your Foretravel

Reply #26 –
Question... does the FT have Hyd. leveling jacks? and couldn't they be used to block up the coach and how would one use the "safety blocks" when using the leveling jacks?

Re: Working Safely around your Foretravel

Reply #27 –
Most (except for some of the U-225 and U240's) of the Foretravels built in the '90's and all from '95 on have air-bag suspensions, no leveling jacks. That is one of the advantages of our coaches, no need to level with hydraulic jacks.
 
Safety blocks keep the "house" portion elevated above the chassis frame.

Re: Working Safely around your Foretravel

Reply #28 –
Thanks Don.
I thought the Air Bags were installed on the suspension system and not between the house and coach frame.  Learned something today! ;)

Re: Working Safely around your Foretravel

Reply #29 –
Quote
How about this for a safety block....4" x 6" x 10" wood block.  Bought an 8' length at Home Depot and had them cut it into 10" pieces. 
They seem to work fine.  I used two on each side of the front and one on each side of the back.  Lowered the coach until they were tight.  I could not find anything suitable in steel.
 


Hey Thanks George,,,that gives me an idea. I still have several of the tops we cut off my Pole Barn poles when I built it...  They are 6"X6".  Is 10" the right length to use?

Mike

Re: Working Safely around your Foretravel

Reply #31 –
11" would be better.  I was concerned about getting them in, but there is plenty of room. 

Re: Working Safely around your Foretravel

Reply #32 –
Quote from: George Hatfield –
How about this for a safety block....4" x 6" x 10" wood block.  Bought an 8' length at Home Depot and had them cut it into 10" pieces. 
They seem to work fine.  I used two on each side of the front and one on each side of the back.  Lowered the coach until they were tight.  I could not find anything suitable in steel. 
George,
It's good to use two safety blocks on each side and please do me an additional favor. 
When you use your wooden safety blocks, place the 6" dimension of the block in line with the frame (instead of the 4" dimension).  The reason being that, from an engineering perspective, if the wood does not bear weight from above and does not have a solid bearing surface from below, in essence, it does not even exist.  Therefore, as shown in your picture, your wooden safety block is not 4'X6"X10".  It is instead, approximately 2.5"(the frame and suspension structural elements have rounded corners)X4"X10".  Another way to view it is how easily a crack propagates, in a block of wood, when you initiate a split with a splitting maul. 
Unlike a metal molecular structure,  when a shear force is in line with wood grain, and you exceed the "plastic deformation" yield stress of the grain of the wood, the strength of the wood becomes very low.  Now the compressive force yield strength of wood, perpendicular to the grain of the wood, is a different matter.  Wooden safety blocks placed with the grain running perpendicular to the compression force, would be many times stronger (roughly, a minimum of ten times stronger, depending upon the type of wood and the imperfections present).
I personally feel that 2"X2"X1/4" Web steel is the minimum strength that is trustworthy and (because it is what I had handy) I personally use 2"X4"X1/4" Web (X 11.5").
Just a personal safety concern,
Neal

Re: Working Safely around your Foretravel

Reply #33 –
Neal... good point.  I will turn them sideways from now on.  I would prefer metal and will replace them when I can find something like you show in your photos.  Thanks!!

Re: Working Safely around your Foretravel

Reply #34 –
George,

Any welding shop should be able to make them for you, also there is Metal Supermarkets that will cut to length and probably has that rectangular tubing in stock.

Re: Working Safely around your Foretravel

Reply #35 –
Quote from: John Cooper –
George,
Any welding shop should be able to make them for you, also there is Metal Supermarkets that will cut to length and probably has that rectangular tubing in stock.
I got mine cut at a scrap metal facility.

Safety Jacks

Reply #36 –
Based on pictures posted by Bill Willett, I had some safety jacks built by a local welding shop. They are adjustable from heights of about 7 1/2" to 11". My plan was to be able to insert or remove the jacks while the coach is shut down and level. I don't have to raise or lower the coach in order to place or remove the jacks.

I assume one could set them for proper ride height and tweak the ride height valves to a good setting. I'll probably leave that task to the experts.

A bonus I found when I picked up the jacks is that stowing them in a container is easier when they are taken apart.

I visited the welding shop with pictures of Willett's safety jacks, and the coach. The folk at the shop took measurements and fabricated the jacks in about 10 days. Cost was $40/jack.

Re: Working Safely around your Foretravel

Reply #37 –
Love those red jacks! Look well thought out. Nice!

Pierce & Gaylie
93'U300/36

Re: Working Safely around your Foretravel

Reply #38 –
Hi JD,
  Real nice jacks. What is the diameter of the threaded rod/bar?
Thanks,

Re: Working Safely around your Foretravel

Reply #39 –
Threaded portion is 1" all thread. Pipe is 1 1/4" OD. Head and feet are 4" channel. The thread fits loosely into the pipe.

The stress is all compressional. The connection of the H frame to the chassis eliminates any lateral forces. The weakest point would probably be the nut on the threads. The jack must support up to 10,000# in order to provide protection if the air bags deflate.

Before I left the welding shop, we put a jack at each corner of the coach and deflated the air bags. There was a small amount of creaking in the suspension system, but all seemed solid.

After I returned home, I leveled the coach in a relatively high position, placed the jacks, and crawled around in the dirt under the coach for the first time. I could see a lot of parts, connections, and controls that I hadn't seen before. Fortunately, most appeared to be in pretty good condition.